STrRedWolf wrote:Besides, if you're wanting USB ports, maybe you should carry a small USB battery you can get cheap off of Amazon? I carry a 5000 mAh USB battery in case my iPhone is about dead and the battery backpack on it was already used. (Yeah, I use it heavily, and not Pokemon Go).

Just figured if NYC is getting USB ports in their new subway cars then why not WMATA? NYC is known more for having an ancient pre-war system that is very primitive compared to DC's more modern system. DC is also more of a white collar city than NYC overall. So USB ports in the 8k's makes more sense in a city like DC than it does in New York. I think its a very likely addition.

"djlong"To me, the major technology that can have the most impact is open gangways. I've personally seen how well this works in Europe and *eventually* people are going to like the idea of increasing capacity by 10% or more without expensive signalling projects or more tracks or rebuilding stations for longer trains.

You can't stick open gangways on WMATA's 75' rail cars and not have end car overhang issues in crossovers. You can't move the trucks under the 75' cars closer to the car ends to solve the end car overhang issues because that creates lateral clearances issues at the middle of the cars in curves. The only way to deal with that is to start from scratch and build shorter cars with truck centers that are closer to the end of the cars. That won't work because of the added weight of the additional trucks need to make a train the same length as an existing train. The last option is articulated train sets with shorter cars. A 5 car 60' car articulated train set would have 6 trucks under it compared to the 8 under an existing 4 cars of the same length. That would be extremely expensive to deploy initially because of support infrastructure needed to maintain them.

It is my belief that the best option to increase capacity is to procure more rolling stock. As it stands now WMATA doesn't have enough rolling stock to run all 8 car trains at the presently advertised peak service headways. When all of the 7k cars are delivered and the 1, 4 and 5k car are retired WMATA will still not have enough rolling stock for an all 8 car trains peak service.

The 8k car procurement should be for fleet expansion only and should number no less the 800 cars.

I can't believe we're still discussing USB ports. This is not Amtrak. The use case is completely different and the clientele are vastly different. You're on this train for 5-45 minutes. It is completely pointless. Furthermore, you're in a rail car where people are constantly moving around, pushing forward and back, squeezing in, etc. Which makes it impractical. Furthermore, the only people would could practically make use of it are the few people who are sitting in a seat, and only the one in the seat along the wall. So in this entire car full of 100 people, only a small fraction could even bother to try using them. Making it even more pointless. And yet even furthermore, the ports will be destroyed in the first few months due to abuse, vandalism, or being pushed into/bent by the other 90 people on the train that can't use them. They will never be repaired or maintained.

Chris Brown wrote:USB ports would actually be a good safety/convenience feature in a way. Gives people the ability to charge their devices if they get suck for a while.

That has nothing to do with safety. Not even a little. Completely moot based on everything I already said. What do you think people are going to do? Play musical seats while stuck in a tunnel in a crush loaded car so you can trade USB charging? Excuse me, can you get out of your seat and stand in this crowd of sweating angry people so I can charge my phone?" Ya right. Why is NYC getting them? Probably for the purpose of PR. It will prove to be pointless and useless for the same reasons.

You talk like Metro is crowded 100% of the time. If you ride off peak the trains are not crowded and using the USB to charge your phone would be easy.

If both NYC and DC get them in their newer railcars I guarantee people will use them. Guarantee. So it would not be "useless". I think your argument is more about if they are necessary which the answer is an obvious no. But useful? Of course they are.

Lets see.. it would provide passengers with the ability to charge their phones and other devices which they cannot do with the current fleet. That qualifies as an improvement. Not sure what your definition of improvement is.

The one pro to your idea is a few people in each car might be able to charge their phones if they happen to be walking around with a cord and are on the train long enough to be worthwhile. And only for about the first month in service until they're all destroyed or inoperative. The cons are everything I listed, all of which make that one minor pro completely moot.